Posted on 05/01/2013 4:06:21 PM PDT by Para-Ord.45
#5: Pink Floyd
Let’s tackle Roger Waters’ reputed antisemitism first, since it lets me put off having to actually talk about his dreadful “music” for a bit.
I grew up trying to avoid The Wall. It was ubiquitous in my steel mill home town — a whining drone blaring from every paneled suburban basement and tricked out Chevy van.
#4 – Bob Marley
The king of rasta “music” (and his idiotic “religion”) inspires so much loathing I barely have to do more than cut and paste this entry. Thanks, other people!
Remember that “tribute to Bob Marley” at this year’s Grammy Awards? Neither does anyone else, because it was terrible. The most entertaining part? You can actually see all these A-list performers’ suddenly remembering, too late and on live TV, that Bob Marley’s songs are, in fact, really really bad.
#3: Stevie Wonder
At the risk of wandering into Elvis Costello territory — yes, he really did say this — I’m gonna come right out with it:
If Stevie Wonder wasn’t black and blind, there’s no way he’d be as highly esteemed as he is.
A white guy who named himself “Wonder” would never hear the end of it. Instead, we never hear the end of Stevie’s songs, especially on American Idol.
OK, so that’s not his fault, but you know what is?
Besides The Secret Life of Plants and “I Just Called To Say I Love You” and “Ebony and Ivory”?
#2: The Doors
The Doors are like certain Twilight Zone episodes or The Shawshank Redemption:
Really deep and profound — if you’re 12 years old.
Jim Morrison’s lyrics — sorry, I mean “poetry” — is, well, let this guy say it:
Jim Morrison wrote a lot of poetry, and most of it was (…) pretentious, regrettable, faux-intellectual diarrhea. Reading Jim Morrison the poet is like watching a shirtless SAE pledge strumming James Blunt on his old acoustic in the university commons during spring break: totally insufferable, uninspiring, and distasteful.
By the way: the dude who wrote that is a fan of The Doors.
Just saying.
#1: Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen is a pompous blowhard whose overwrought, arrested-adolescent lyrics make Jim Morrison sound like Philip Larkin.
And like Morrison, he wrote about stuff he knows nothing about — like having a real job — and, like both Morrison and Stevie Wonder, he gave himself a ridiculous “penis” nickname: “The Boss.”
The only reason “Because the Night” is good is because Patti Smith co-wrote it.
But as usual, it took an Englishman to give Springsteen the thrashing he deserves:
Someone like Tom Waits makes me feel like I understand America a little better. Springsteen makes me feel hopelessly estranged from the place with his hyperventilating soap operas about young lovers riding outta this one-horse town on the back of a hurricane down the highway of dreams. (…)
His lyrics are wrought from overcooked high school poetry (“we ride through mansions of glory on suicide machines”), homespun hokum, and the York Study Notes to John Steinbeck.
Springsteen appeals to the eternal adolescent in every rock fan, but not the fun, irreverent version, rather the inner Holden Caulfield, earnestly searching for ANSWERS and TRUTH, desperate to be a hero in the drama of his own life, utterly incapable of laughing at himself or the world.
Pt.1 :http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2013/04/23/the-5-most-overrated-male-musicians-part-one/?singlepage=true
Pt.II:http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2013/04/30/the-5-most-overrated-male-musicians-part-two/?singlepage=true
I concure. :-)
Really, well, how about this: Melanie (Brand new key).
It may be pretentious but it’s musicianship is awesome. I kind of lost interest when Freddy came out and I think the last album I like from them is Jazz.
His last song though, is pretty awesome but Freddy didn’t write it, I think the drummer did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fjiapiq-hqY
Brian May’s guitar playing is awesome as well and he and his dad built that guitar that has that awesome squeal when he selects that pickup.
Although everyone thinks Freddy was gay, the song on A Night at the Opera, “Love of My Life” was about his on/off girlfriend who inherited his house when he passed.
The bass player kind of dropped off the planet, they never say what happened except that he’s at a place in his life where he just wants to enjoy his home life.
As I posted to another-Have tried to like Genesis, just can’t. Personal taste.
There are other bands that I have to acknowledge are technically good but would never listen to. I guess Genesis may fall into that category.
As far as Phil-well, Mediocre pop music and him just seem to go together like Chocolate and Peanut butter. :)
Well, I'm not one of them. Anyone who lets his less than perfect voice block them from the beauty of his words is really missing out on something special.
And yes, Mr. Tambourine Man is one of his best.
Should we not determine whether or not the listed people are even “musicians” before we declare them overated?
Yes - comprende. What I liked about your response is you are able to separate respect for an artist vs personal taste. Not everyone can do that for some reason. There are many bands that I respect but don’t like.
Well, yes, he is *also* a musician, but that’s not what he’d ever be known for. During Floyd’s best years, he ceded the lead guitar to Gilmour.
Beatles are OK, Stevie is OK, especially for when they came out.
Scratch Bob Dylan. Scratch Village People.
Pink Floyd is great, especially Dark Side of the Moon.
Lose Madonna.
I didn’t go. In those days I wasn’t really into rock n roll. I grew up with parents who had Sinatra, big band and Broadway albums. To this day, I still love the 1940s and prior music. I did eventually get into rock, but to this day, I don’t see anything that was so wonderful about the Beatles — individually or together.
I agree about The Who. Greatest band of all time. I saw them live twice. Quadrophenia kept me half sane in an earlier era even though I only came out when I drank my gin.
As for this list, Pink Floyd Animals is very underrated album. Don’t know about Marley, and am indifferent to Stevie Wonder. I liked some Doors songs but others are depressing enough to make you want to put a gun in your mouth. Springsteen is totally overreated and just plain sucks.
Concur-as much as I despised Disco in the 70s and swore that it was not music, I have to admit they showed more musicianship than any rapper ever concevied of
Squonk
Concur
While I wouldn't mind seeing Nick Mason play with David Gilmour again, I'm more than happy enough to listen to Pink Floyd without Waters. Overrated as a bass player, and overrated as a lyricist. Plus, he was really nasty to Rick Wright as "The Wall" tour was coming up, and forced him out of the band. Pressured by the others involved in the project, Waters agreed to "hire" Rick as a contractor for the tour, and as such, was the only one of the 4 to actually make money on that tour!
Rick Wright was touring with David Gilmour's band up until his death from Cancer. You could tell there was a lot of love and respect between Gilmour and Wright.
Mark
Michael Jackson gets trashed first and foremost because of the freak he became, and his behavior. He had his share of musical genius and was tremendously influential. Maybe it hasn't aged to the point that the music overcomes the been-there-heard-that of a lot of overexposure. I suspect history will be kinder to his music than it will be to him.
Genesis was awful post-Peter Gabriel, very interesting while he was front man. Phil Collins was a talented drummer and should’ve stuck with it, lol. Peter Gabriel did some very striking things solo until it went to his head and he began getting preachy. Same with Gordon Sumner. Same with Bono. Same with Springsteen. Same with a lot of household names.
I generally don't have much use for popular Pink Floyd. Popular Pink Floyd is anything that got airplay. Early Syd Barrett era is another matter, I enjoy it. Lesser-known tracks post-Barrett, there have been a few that worked for me. Somebody mentioned “Fearless” upthread, that's one of them.
I've never understood the esteem in which Geddy Lee of Rush has been held, sophomoric sci-fi lyrics, that godawful screechy caterwauling, I don't get it and never will.
Phil Collins was a damn fine Speedway racer and I found him very down to earth. Seemed to be a good guy when I met him.
OOPS! Wrong Phil Collins.
John Cougar Menstrualcramp, for PJ’s Springsteen reasons.
"Mr. Tambourine Man" seems to be about a drug dealer.
Echoes one of the most amazing musical instrumental songs ever. The sounds. I always say “you don’t have to be high to trip on Floyd”.
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